SportsDirect Inc. staff
Oct 19, 2013
Southern Methodist 34, Memphis 29: Garrett Gilbert threw for 321 yards and two touchdowns as the visiting Mustangs held off a second-half charge by the Tigers.
Traylon Shead led the way for Southern Methodist (2-4, 1-1 AAC) with two scores on the ground. Keenan Holman and Collin LaGasse each caught touchdown passes for the Mustangs, who picked up their first win in the American Athletic Conference.
Paxton Lynch went 26-of-36 for 198 yards and a touchdown for Memphis (1-5, 0-3). Ryan Coleman returned two fumbles for touchdowns and the Tigers' defense forced three turnovers. Mose Frazier and Brandon Hayes chipped in with a touchdown apiece.
Southern Methodist opened the scoring on the second play from scrimmage when Holman hauled in a 79-yard pass from Gilbert. The Mustangs increased their lead to 21-3 courtesy of two short touchdown runs by Shead. SMU tacked on 10 more points before halftime with a 37-yard field goal by Chase Hover and an 8-yard touchdown grab by LaGasse.
Memphis scored its first touchdown of the game thanks to Coleman's strip and score in the third quarter. Coleman then scooped up a fumble on special teams for another touchdown to cut the deficit to 18. The Tigers continued their furious charge when Hayes plunged into the end zone and Frazier caught a touchdown pass to make it 34-29 but that's as close as they would get.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Jake Elliott kicked a career-long 52-yard field goal in the first quarter. … SMU has now won its last three games against Memphis. … Martin Ifedi added another sack to increase his tally to 7.5 on the season.